Dave, I think we're on the same page if opposite sides of the coin. Let me take this a little further....

On FB I've seen some of those "motivational style" posters - you know the ones I mean, with a picture and a caption designed to convey some point. After Whitney died, the posters going around showed troops serving on the front line and the caption "Whitney Who?" The point to take is obvious, but stupid all the same.

Look, let's face something. Celebrities are not heroes, generally speaking. A real hero - "Nobody's Hero" if you know the Rush song (which is the point I'm trying to make) - may not be well known and may pay an ultimate price for himself and for others. We all know that.

But let's focus on our real lives a moment. Entertainers play a HUGE role in our lives, whether or not we admit it. My first dance with a girl in 7th grade - what was playing? When I didn't want to get out of bed for weeks during a bad time - what morning show DJ's jokes got me laughing again? What songs got me out of a funk or made me feel something unique, or think deeper about something? Which drummer(s) motivated me to try to play myself? For those of us who truly love music, or who play music, it is a very big deal, and our lives' highest and lowest points (and all in between) are in fact defined by it. Those songs and artists remind us of those times, good and bad.

So when a Whitney dies, a Michael Jackson, or some other titan - it affects people. You gain nothing by questioning it. Let it be. You're not going to change how the mourners feel even one millimeter, and even to suggest it you will turn those mourners off in a way you can't even imagine.

Probably a great deal of my musical heros from Miles Davis to Jimmy Page and everyone in between was a drug addict at some point. I could care less than zero. I'm not trying to emulate their personal lives, and as Boney said, they didn't throw it in my face as the thing to do (to your Tebow example).

They did drugs - fine. The music they created speaks for itself. The talent also speaks for itself. And if people feel they lost something when their favorite artist dies, let them mourn. Nobody will accomplish a damn thing going to someone who feels loss and trying to politicize the issue by saying "Well, why don't you feel this way about XYZ?" It's the wrong time to ask the wrong question.

People are upset with Whitney because what she did to herself was a shame - such talent wasted! People are upset with Tebow because of politics and what they see as an agenda that should be private instead being rammed down their throat too much. It's not an apples to apples comparison to make because the Whitney thing is not politics in any sense. It's just a shame.

I have no problem with someone who chooses to practice their faith in public as long as they don't try to insert their practices into my life or the lives of others. I'm a firm believer in "live and let live" and feel like the world would be a much better place if we could all practice that philosophy.

Have you ever had an Atheist knock on your door to try to sell you Atheism? Hmmmm, probably not.

I have never had anyone try to sell me any beliefs of any kind at my door or anywhere else. Matter of fact in my entire life no one has ever asked me what my beliefs are.

That includes some of my closest friends who save souls for a living.

BTW...They have never tried to church me up either.

But I have had Atheist friends compare religion to the male organ.

I have Atheist friends that constantly say religious leaders and their flock are stupid and mock them every day.

I can't find a single example in my email or on my FB page where a religious person has done anything like that to Atheist or anyone of a different belief.

YMMV

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We are spending more money than we have ever spent before, and it does not work. After eight years we have just as much unemployment as when we started, and an enormous debt to boot. H Morgenthau 1939

You must live in an exclusive neighborhood where no one knocks on your doors. You must never go out in public and have strangers walk up to you to hand you a watchtower booklet. You must never go into department stores and have strangers walk up to you asking you about Jesus or if you have been saved.....in other words, you must not get out much.

You Atheist friends are no different than your opposing political view friends. The opposing person will always knock down what they oppose. And if you haven't seen the religious spouting negativity, than you just need to open your eyes a bit wider.

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Laborare pugnare paratus sum2006 R1200rtPRC-E7Richard"Right now, there is someone that is busier than you working out!"

You must live in an exclusive neighborhood where no one knocks on your doors. You must never go out in public and have strangers walk up to you to hand you a watchtower booklet. You must never go into department stores and have strangers walk up to you asking you about Jesus or if you have been saved.....in other words, you must not get out much.

You Atheist friends are no different than your opposing political view friends. The opposing person will always knock down what they oppose. And if you haven't seen the religious spouting negativity, than you just need to open your eyes a bit wider.

And... the other problem is, there is a HUGE difference in what is labled as "religion".

Wiccans are considered a "religion"Satan Worshippers are considered a "religion"Mother Earth worshipers are considered a "religion"

...and they are not even remotely close to what might be called Christian, Judaism, or Islam. So... "all" religion is bad.

And there are "modern" faiths that claim to be "christian", and yet... they aren't.

No doubt, plenty of bad things have been done in the name of "religion".

Every month I get the knock on my door. When we moved to our current location my wife was asked which church she belonged to frequently by patients she treated. It seemed to be a big deal. The guy that reads the water meter or checks the septic system every month always tried to engage me in scripture to prove or disprove a social issue. I assumed that he who could recite scripture was trying to raise his station in life above that which he compared an assumption of mine. I could care less. My mantra is if you need religion to get you through your day by all means embrace it. Just don't expect me to embrace it. If Tebow feels strongly more power to him. If he falters he will fall hard on his crusading sword. Whitney faltered and didn't have very far to fall.

Peace on earth or earth in pieces.

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JoeNorCal Meets SoCal in the Middle 2015 is April 24-26.

Every month I get the knock on my door. When we moved to our current location my wife was asked which church she belonged to frequently by patients she treated. It seemed to be a big deal.

I confess... I asked a Seattle area doctor that question once, because there were bibles in his waiting room. He said, "I'm simply a Christian. I prefer not to say where I attend. Go where you're fed the food you like." I later learned that he goes on trips and provides free medical services in impoverished places. I never did learn what "church" he belonged to.